Chromosomes and Human Genetics

Chromosomes andHuman Genetics

Chapter 21

Cystic Fibrosis

• Caused by mutations in CFTR gene• Defective channel protein in membrane

of cells in exocrine glands • Glands secrete abnormally thick, gluey

mucus• Interferes with breathing, pancreatic

function

Genes

• Units of information about heritable traits

• In eukaryotes, distributed among chromosomes

• Each has a particular locus – Location on a chromosome

Homologous Chromosomes

• Homologous autosomes are identical in length, size, shape, and gene sequence

• Sex chromosomes are nonidentical but still homologous

• Homologous chromosomes interact, then segregate from one another during meiosis

Alleles

• Different molecular forms of a gene

• Arise through mutation

• Diploid cell has a pair of alleles at each locus

• Alleles on homologous chromosomes may be same or different

Sex Chromosomes

• Discovered in late 1800s

• Humans– XX is female, XY is male

• Human X and Y chromosomes function as homologues during meiosis

Karyotype Preparation

• Arrested cells are broken open• Metaphase chromosomes are fixed

and stained• Chromosomes are photographed

through microscope• Photograph of chromosomes is cut

up and arranged to form karyotype diagram

Human Karyotype

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 XX (or XY)

Sex Determination

XX

XY

XX

XY

X X

Y

X

Sex-chromosome combinations possible in new individual

Y

X

sperm

X

X

eggs

Female germ cell Male germ cell

The X Chromosome

• Carries more than 2,300 genes

• Most genes deal with nonsexual traits

• Genes on X chromosome can be expressed in both males and females

The Y Chromosome

• Fewer than two dozen genes identified

• One is the master gene for male sex determination – SRY gene (sex-determining region of Y)

• SRY present, testes form

• SRY absent, ovaries form

Effect of YChromosome

10 weeks

Y present

Y absent

7 weeks

birth approaching

appearance of structuresthat will give rise toexternal genitalia

appearance of “uncommitted” duct system

of embryo at 7 weeks

Y present

Yabsent

testis

ovary

testes ovaries

X Chromosome Inactivation

• Mammalian females have two X chromosomes per cell

• One X is inactivated in each cell

• Inactivation is random

• Female is a “mosaic”

Barr Body

• Condensed X chromosome

• Visible in micrographs

• May be either the maternal or the paternal X chromosome

Linkage

• Genes on the same chromosome are “linked”

• Crossing over can rearrange linked genes

• Farther apart two genes are on chromosome, the more they are to be rearranged by crossing overA B C D

Full Linkage

xAB ab

50%AB

50%ab

All AaBb

meiosis, gamete formation

Parents:

F1 offspring:

With no crossovers, half of the gametes have one parental genotype and half have the other

AB

ab

AB

ab

ab

AB

Incomplete Linkage

Parents:

F1 offspring

Unequal ratios of four types of gametes:

All AaCc

x

meiosis, gamete formation

AC acA

C AC

AC

ac

ac

Ac

aC

ac

Most gametes have parental genotypes

A smaller number have recombinant genotypes

Pedigree • Chart that shows genetic connections among

individuals

• Standardized symbols

• Knowledge of probability and Mendelian patterns used to suggest basis of a trait

• Conclusions most accurate when drawn from large number of pedigrees

Pedigree for Polydactyly

I

II

III

IV

V

6 7

12

5,5 6,6

5,5 6,6

5,5 6,6

5,5 6,6

5,5 6,6

5,5 6,6

6,6 5,5

6,6 5,5

5,6 6,7

6,6 6,6*Gene not expressed in this carrier.

*

malefemale

Genetic Abnormality

• A rare, uncommon version of a trait

• Polydactyly

– Unusual number of toes or fingers

– Does not cause any health problems

– View of trait as disfiguring is subjective

Genetic Disorder

• Inherited conditions that cause mild to severe medical problems

• Why don’t they disappear?– Mutation introduces new rare alleles

– In heterozygotes, harmful allele is masked, so it can still be passed on to offspring

Autosomal-Recessive Inheritance Patterns

• If parents are both heterozygous, child will have a 25% chance of being affected

Examples of Recessive Traits

• Cystic fibrosis

• Phenylketonuria (PKU)

• Tay-Sachs disease

• Many other genetic disorders

Autosomal- Dominant Inheritance

Trait typically appears in every generation

Examples of Dominant Traits

• Huntington disorder

• Achondroplasia

• Familial hypercholesterolemia

X-Linked Recessive Inheritance

• Males show disorder more than females

• Son cannot inherit disorder from his father

Examples of X-Linked Traits

• X-linked recessive– Red/green color blindness– Hemophilia A– Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD)

• X-linked dominant– Faulty enamel trait

Sex-Influenced Traits

• Appear more frequently in one sex than in the other, or phenotypes differ with sex

• Genes are carried on autosomes

• Pattern baldness

Duplication

• Gene sequence that is repeated several to hundreds of times

• Duplications occur in normal chromosomes

• May have adaptive advantage

Duplication

normal chromosome

one segment repeated

three repeats

Inversion

A linear stretch of DNA is reversed within the chromosome

Translocation

• A piece of one chromosome becomes attached to another nonhomologous chromosome

• Most are reciprocal• Philadelphia chromosome arose from a

reciprocal translocation between chromosomes 9 and 22

Translocation

chromosome

nonhomologous chromosome

reciprocal translocation

Deletion

• Loss of some segment of a chromosome• Most are lethal or cause serious disorder

Aneuploidy

• Individuals have one extra or less chromosome

• (2n + 1 or 2n - 1)• Major cause of human reproductive

failure• Most human miscarriages are

aneuploids

Polyploidy

• Individuals have three or more of each

type of chromosome (3n, 4n)

• Lethal for humans

– 99% die before birth

– Newborns die soon after birth

Nondisjunction

n + 1

n + 1

n - 1

n - 1chromosome alignments at metaphase I

nondisjunction at anaphase I

alignments at metaphase II anaphase II

Down Syndrome

• Trisomy of chromosome 21• Mental impairment and a variety of

additional defects• Can be detected before birth• Risk of Down syndrome increases

dramatically in mothers over age 35

Turner Syndrome

• Inheritance of only one X (XO)• 98% spontaneously aborted• Survivors are short, infertile females

– No functional ovaries– Secondary sexual traits reduced– May be treated with hormones, surgery

Klinefelter Syndrome

• XXY condition• Results mainly from nondisjunction in

mother (67%)• Phenotype is tall males

– Sterile or nearly so– Feminized traits (sparse facial hair,

somewhat enlarged breasts)– Treated with testosterone injections

XYY Condition

• Taller-than-average males• Most otherwise phenotypically normal• Some mentally impaired• Once thought to be predisposed to

criminal behavior, but studies now discredit